


Starlight

by fandomsnstuff



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe - Royalty, First Kiss, Fluff, M/M, Magic, Wishes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-20
Updated: 2018-05-20
Packaged: 2019-05-09 10:38:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,818
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14714468
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fandomsnstuff/pseuds/fandomsnstuff
Summary: “I wish-” Keith said, “-to start over.”~Lance closed his eyes tight and clenched his hands into fists, ‘I wish to fall in love.’~Be careful what you wish for, because it just might come true.





	Starlight

**Author's Note:**

> This is a (month late) birthday present for my amazing and wonderful gf @quillowl!!!!! She approves of this fic, so I hope you enjoy it!

**A lonely desert shack somewhere in the United States. XY18.**

 

Keith climbed up onto the roof of his shack as the setting sun touched the horizon, casting an orange glow over everything. Laying down, he watched as the sky darkened above him and he let his mind drift away into nothingness. 

 

His eyes scanned the sky and when they caught the first twinkle of light coming from within the endless dark blue, he stared right up at it. 

 

“Starlight, starbright,” Keith mumbled the nursery rhyme Shiro had taught him forever ago, “first star I see tonight,” his chest felt tight, old memories of his lost brother-but-not-actually running through his mind, “I wish I may, I wish I might,” he used to think wishes were dumb, but since Shiro had gone missing, he’d found himself searching for the first star to appear in the sky every night, “grant this wish I wish tonight. I wish…” Keith found himself hesitating. For a year, he’d been wishing for Shiro to come back, and had gotten nothing. His search into the strange energy in the desert was bringing back no results, and he was tired. He was so tired. 

 

“I wish-” he said again, “-to start over.” 

 

He laid out on his roof until the navy blue sky turned inky black and the first star got lost between the millions of others that appeared. He sighed and pushed himself to his feet, climbing down from the roof. He laid on his makeshift bed and stared up at his dark ceiling, tired yet awake, until his eyes closed and his consciousness faded away all on their own. 

 

**A castle in a land far, far away. YX18.**

 

The crown prince slid along the wall of the crowded ballroom until he reached the entrance. He pulled the ornate wooden door open a fraction, just enough for him to slip through unnoticed and take off. 

 

Lance ran through halls and up stairs until he made it back to his bedroom. He closed his door and leaned against it, catching his breath. 

 

The ball he had just run away from may have been thrown for his birthday, but he could only pretend to like being paraded around for so long. Since he had just turned eighteen, the entire evening had been used for talking to different foreign royals about their daughters being his bride. At first, whenever his advisor introduced another family, Lance smiled and nodded and pretended like he didn’t hate it, but it got overwhelming. Most of the girls he met fell into two categories: they either looked like they wanted to be literally anywhere else, or like they never wanted to leave. 

 

It’s not that Lance didn’t want to get married one day and have kids and live happily ever after, but he didn’t want it to be a marriage for politics. A ploy to expand the kingdom. He wanted to fall in love. A true, soft love that he was able to build genuinely. 

 

His parents always told him that he would learn to love his wife, but Lance wanted be in love  _ before  _ he proposed,  _ before  _ he was engaged,  _ before  _ he got married and had kids and had to share a bed with someone for the rest of his life. 

 

But he hadn’t found that love, that one person, and now he was going to be stuck meeting royal after royal, greeting uninterested girls and far too interested girls, trying to imagine himself being with them for the rest of his life. 

 

If his parents were still around, he might have been able to bargain for some sort of compromise, but they had passed a few years beforehand. Now Coran, his advisor, private tutor, and a stickler for tradition, was trying to find him the perfect royal, or even just the perfect high-class bride by the end of the week. At least he seemed take Lance’s feelings into some consideration, as minimal as it may be at times. 

 

Lance sighed, pushing himself up from where he was leaning against his door. He took his crown off and tossed it onto his bed as he crossed the room to his balcony. Opening the doors, he stepped out into the warm night and breathed in the fresh air. He leaned against the railing at the edge of the balcony and crossed his legs at the ankle as he gazed up at the dark expanse of the night sky. It was dotted with so many stars, Lance could never hope to count them all. No matter how many times he tried. 

 

On that particular night, though, one star caught his eye. It was shining brighter than all the others, and Lance was reminded of a bedtime story his mother once told him about a wishing star that was really a fairy, and if you recite her poem and make a wish, it could come true. 

 

“Starlight, starbright,” Lance began, the old poem and the sound of his mother’s voice ringing in his ears, “wishing star in the sky tonight,” he could feel his heart beating against his chest, “I wish I may, I wish I might,” Lance’s vision seemed to zero in on the star, “grant this wish I wish tonight.” 

 

Lance closed his eyes tight and clenched his hands into fists,  _ ‘I wish to fall in love.’  _

 

When he opened his eyes and looked back up at the sky, he found that he couldn’t see the wishing star anymore. All the stars shined together, and none stood out. Lance sighed, thinking that maybe he had imagined it in his desperation. 

 

He rubbed tiredly at his eyes and turned back towards his bedroom, only to see that his path was blocked. He yelped when he came face-to-face with a young woman he had never seen before. She was in an elegant blue and pink gown, her hair was white, and she had pink markings underneath her eyes. She seemed to have an ethereal glow about her. She regarded Lance with an air of interest. 

 

“A prince wishing to fall in love before he has to marry someone he doesn’t have feelings for,” she said dryly, “how original.” 

 

“I’m sorry,” Lance said, recovering from the shock of finding a strange woman in his room, “but how did you get in here? You should be down in the ballroom.” 

 

Lance should have expected it, one of the girls following him. 

 

The girl smiled, “actually, I’m exactly where I need to be.” 

 

Lance felt something boil in his chest, “no, miss, you’re not. These are my private quarters. How did you even get past the guards? They’re stationed right outside the door and-” 

 

“Do you want your wish granted or not?” She interrupted him, and the mention of his wish made Lance’s voice die in his throat. 

 

He stared at her, took her in again, catching things he had missed the first time. Her ears were pointed, her hair sparkled, and the ethereal glow around her was an  _ actual  _ glow that seemed to encase her entire being.

 

“You’re the wishing star fairy,” he said in awe. 

 

“It’s Allura.” 

 

“Allura,” Lance tested the name on his tongue. 

 

“Now, back to the reason I’m here.” Allura stepped towards him, walking in a slow circle around him as she spoke, “royalty wishing to fall in love before marrying a stranger isn’t new. Frankly, I’ve gotten a few ‘fall in love’ requests tonight, just from people in this castle. But those girls are quite simple to help. Send them a sweet boy who makes them laugh and likes to listen to them, and we’re happy. As for other princes, again, just give them a girl who wants to know them for their personality, not their money, and we’ve got happily ever after. But you-” she stopped in front of him, and Lance could see an understanding glint in her eye- “are a little more complicated.” 

 

“How so?” Lance’s chest felt tight, like he could barely breathe. 

 

“You don’t want to have to learn to love one of these girls, because you’re afraid you won’t be able to.” Lance swallowed thickly, Allura continued, “you’re different. You know you’re different. Don’t you, Lance?” 

 

“Maybe,” he choked out.

 

“Then tell me, Lance,” she spoke softly, “tell me what makes you different.” 

 

Once again, Lance could feel his heart beating out of his chest, “I never notice the pretty girls like my father always said he did when he was my age. I don’t fantasize about the day I’ll marry one of them and live happily ever after with them.” 

 

“And who do you notice? Who do you wish to fall in love with? ” Allura’s voice gently prodded Lance towards the truth. 

 

“The boys training to be guards. The brothers of the girls I’m supposed to be falling in love with. In stories I always wanted to be the prince charming, but I also always wanted to be the one who found their prince charming. I want a sweet boy with a nice smile and pretty eyes, who I can laugh with and talk to and just exist with,” Lance rambled and he felt like he couldn’t breathe, but at the same time, he felt lighter. There were unshed tears stinging at the back of his eyes. 

 

Allura placed a hand on his shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze, “and that’s why I’m here.” 

 

“What do I do?” Lance asked. 

 

Allura turned towards the doors back into Lance’s bedroom, “nothing.” 

 

“Wait, nothing? I thought I had to have some part in this?” 

 

Allura grabbed the handles of the double doors and pulled them open. She twisted partially to look at him, “just be yourself, everything else will work out.” She turned back towards the doors and took half a step forward before turning back to look at him again, “oh, and go for a walk tomorrow.” 

 

“Wha-” 

 

“In the woods. Just go for a walk. Enjoy the scenery or something, get some air.” 

 

“I...okay,” he said.   

 

Allura smiled and turned back towards the doors. As she stepped through, the space in the doorframe shined brightly and when the light faded, all that was left was Lance and his empty bedroom. With his back turned, Lance missed seeing the bright shooting star that flew across the sky that seemed to drop right in the middle of the woods. 

 

**The woods. YX18.**

 

It had been surprisingly easy for Lance to convince Coran to let him go on a walk in the woods. Alone. Without even a single guard to monitor his every move. 

 

It’s not that Lance wasn’t capable of protecting himself, he’d been trained to fight by his father and the head of the guard for years. Coran could just be a tad overprotective at times, especially since Lance’s parents died and he became Lance’s unofficial single parent. 

 

But when Lance had requested at lunchtime that his regular afternoon tutoring session be postponed, Coran agreed immediately. Lance had had an entire spiel lined up about the ball the night before and how he was tired and needed a day to rest, but he hadn’t needed to use it. Coran simply told him to bring a snack along and be back by sundown. He hadn’t even given him the ‘don’t trust strangers’ talk. 

 

Lance took his walk at a slow pace, admiring the plants along his path and listening to the birds chirping up in the trees. It was hot out, but he was shielded from the burning sun by the canopy of trees above him. 

 

He started to wonder if maybe he had dreamed the entire interaction with Allura. He didn’t know how long he had been walking, but nothing had happened. He also didn’t know how a walk in the woods would help him forget his fantasies and fall in love with a high-class girl with a good name before he was just forced to marry one Coran had found on his own. 

 

Lance sighed and considered turning back. The woods had lovely scenery, and they were calm, but the serenity of the woods also allowed his thoughts to wander, and the more they wandered, the more anxious Lance felt about his future and the future of his kingdom. But he knew that if he kept walking, he would come across a clearing he and his parents used to have picnics in. The grass always seemed to be soft, and there were no sticks that would poke you when you sat down, and the branches of the surrounding trees arched over it enough that you wouldn’t get scorched by the sun as you sat there. 

 

Lance hadn’t returned to the clearing at all in the two years since his parents had passed. As he got closer, he unintentionally picked up his speed until he was running in the direction of the clearing. Once he reached it, he stopped right at the edge. He had been expecting the clearing to be as it always had been. Bright green grass, just enough sun poking through to warm you, the sounds of the woods encasing you. All of that was there and it was almost perfect. Except for one thing. 

 

There was someone else already there. 

 

Laying on his stomach, there was a boy in the middle of the clearing. He wore a black shirt and pants, his hair was long and also black, some of it fell into his face. Lance approached slowly and knelt a short distance away from the boy. He seemed to be asleep, so Lance inched closer. 

 

Once he was right next to him, Lance lowered himself onto his stomach to be on the same level as him. “Hello?” Lance whispered. 

 

Suddenly, the strange boy inhaled sharply and his eyes snapped open. “Who the hell are you?!” He reached out and shoved Lance away from him as he scrambled to his feet. 

 

Panicked, Lance pushed himself up onto his feet, “I’m sorry! I was just-” 

 

“Who the hell are you?!” The boy repeated, glaring at Lance, his hands clenched into tight fists, “how did you get-” he cut himself off, his eyes widening. He turned in circles, taking in his surroundings. He whipped back around to Lance, “where the hell am I?” 

 

“Um,” Lance was confused by the question, “the woods?” 

 

The boy scoffed, “what kind of an answer is that? ‘The woods.’ Where? Where are these woods? What country are we in? Where in the ever-living fuck am I?” The boy ran his hands through his hair, “why am I freaking out? I’m probably just dreaming. God, this is one hell of a lucid dream.” 

 

Lance stepped closer to the boy, “what’s lucid dreaming?” 

 

The boy gave Lance a once-over, “it means I know I’m dreaming. Like right now.” 

 

Lance took another step, “you can’t be dreaming right now.” 

 

The boy crossed his arms, “and why is that?” 

 

“Because I’m not dreaming.” 

 

The boy rolled his eyes, “right. Well, you’re just a character in my dream, so of course you don’t think you’re dreaming. But I went to bed in my-” Lance reached out and pinched the boy’s exposed forearm. He stopped mid-sentence and cried out, “ugh, dude, did you just pinch me?!” 

 

Lance smirked, “I pinched you and you’re still here. So you’re not dreaming.” 

 

The boy stared at Lance for a moment. “What the fuck,” he said, ever so eloquent. 

 

Lance, not entirely sure what the phrase meant (the boy must have been from somewhere far away), took another step closer so he was standing right next to the boy,“now that that’s out of the way. Who are you? You must have a name, and it feels strange to keep calling you ‘the boy’ in my thoughts.” 

 

The boy ran his hands through his hair again, clutching at the strands and ignoring Lance’s question, “this doesn’t make any sense. One second I’m falling asleep in my shack in the desert, the next I’m waking up in the middle of a forest.” 

 

“Maybe it’s magic,” Lance said. 

 

“Magic doesn’t exist,” the boy retorted, crossing his arms again. 

 

“Yes it does,” Lance crossed his own arms, mimicking the boy’s position, “how else would you have been transported to the middle of these woods all the way from the desert lands? Hm?” The boy bit his lip and looked down at the grass, Lance smiled triumphantly, “now, am I ever going to get your name?” 

 

“Keith,” he looked up at Lance and held out his hand, “you?” Lance eyed Keith’s outstretched hand. As a royal, he always bowed in greeting. It might have sounded strange, but he had never actually shaken hands with someone. Keith gave Lance a curious look after he had still not moved. “Dude, are you okay?” He asked. 

 

“Ah, sorry,” Lance said, reaching out to grab Keith’s hand, “I was lost in thought, I suppose. I’m Lance. Apologies if I scared you earlier.”  

 

Keith let go of Lance’s hand and shrugged, shoving his hands in his pockets, “it’s alright. I’m the one who appeared out of nowhere in the middle of this clearing.” 

 

“So you really don’t know how you got here?” 

 

Keith seemed to hesitate for a moment, “I...well...yeah. No idea.” 

 

“Well, do you need a place to stay? I have plenty of room.” 

 

Keith bit his lip, “are you sure? I don’t want to be a burden.” 

 

Lance waved his hand dismissively, “nonsense, come with me.” Lance turned and started back into the woods. Keith fell into step next to him after a few moments. Lance glanced over at him and saw that he was staring at the ground, biting his lip. “Something on your mind?” He asked. 

 

Keith tensed for a moment, as if he had already forgotten about Lance’s presence. He hummed in thought for a moment, “well, besides the obvious curiosity on how I got here, I was just wondering...why do you talk so formally?”  

 

Lance furrowed his eyebrows, “what do you mean?” 

 

“Well,” Keith gestured in front of himself with his hands,  “you said things like ‘apologies’ and ‘nonsense’. No one talks like that.” 

 

“I don’t know what you mean, everyone does. My parents taught me from a young age to speak properly to everyone, and everyone speaks to me that way.” 

 

“Look man, I don’t know where I am, so I’m already kinda mentally losing my shit, but where I come from people only talk all formal and proper like that in front of people who are in charge of them. It’s weird to hear it in normal conversation.” 

 

Lance pursed his lips, “ah, that would explain it, then.” Keith gave him a confused look so Lance elaborated, “if people only speak properly to those in charge, it would make sense that my parents taught me to speak properly. Considering our family is in charge of the kingdom.” 

 

Keith stopped in his tracks, “wait. What?” Lance stopped a few steps ahead of Keith and turned to face him. “What do you mean you’re in charge of the kingdom?” 

 

Lance tilted his head, “I mean I’m part of the royal family. The sole heir to the throne.” He took in Keith’s shocked expression with an air of curiosity and interest, “why is this so shocking to you? You said you’re from the desert lands, they have their own royal family.” 

 

Keith blinked at Lance. “Is it too late to make sure I’m not dreaming?” Lance huffed and crossed the short distance between them. He reached out and pinched Keith’s upper arm. Keith scowled, “ow, okay, I get the message!” 

 

“Good. Now, shall we go? Or do you wish to keep standing here?” Keith grumbled and walked past Lance, continuing down the path. Lance turned and took a few long strides to catch up to him. “So, are you from the desert lands?” 

 

“What?” 

 

“Earlier, you mentioned you had a shack in the desert. So you’re from the desert lands, yes?” 

 

“Um, no,” Keith said, “it’s a different desert. I’m from, uh,” he hesitated, “nowhere in particular.” 

 

“That’s nonsense, you have to be from somewhere.” 

 

“Not really.” 

 

Lance tapped his chin, looking into the distance as he walked, “Keith of nowhere in particular,” he laughed, “you know, I think it suits you.” 

 

“I guess.” 

 

Lance looked over at Keith. He had his hands shoved in his pockets and his eyes were trained downwards. He seemed to be biting the inside of his cheek. Lance, feeling that Keith was no longer interested in talking, kept the rest of the questions fluttering around in his head to himself. They walked the rest of the way to the castle in relative silence. 

 

**The castle library.  YX18.**

 

Two days after Keith had arrived, it was late at night and Lance was still awake. He was sitting at a table in the back corner of the library, reading over old documents from past disputes and deals with other kingdoms that Coran had assigned to him. 

 

_ “You need to be able to read these over and look at them from every perspective. See every possible outcome from choosing one way or the other, and see which decision benefits our kingdom the most,”  _ he had said. 

 

Lance tapped his fingers against the table as he scanned the document for what felt like the millionth time. He could feel his attention span diminishing with each second that passed. He rested his elbows on the table and pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes, trying to rub the fatigue out of them. With his hands pressed against his eyes, and his world fallen into darkness, Lance took a few deep breaths to steady himself. He tried to clear his mind and listen to the stillness of the library. 

 

The silence was interrupted when Lance picked up on what sounded like quiet footsteps. He put his hands down and blinked his eyes open, readjusting to the dim light. He lifted himself out of his chair and made his way through the empty rows of shelves, until he came across a row that wasn’t. 

 

“Keith?” 

 

Keith jumped and turned to face Lance. His tense posture relaxed a fraction when he saw Lance, but he was still on edge. “Geez, don’t sneak up on people like that.” 

 

“What are you doing up so late?” 

 

Keith crossed his arms, “I could ask you the same thing.” 

 

The corners of Lance’s mouth turned down into a frown, “I asked you first.” 

 

“I asked you second.” 

 

Lance huffed. He’d only been able to speak to Keith a few times since he’d arrived. The second they returned to the castle together, Coran had whisked Lance away to a tutoring session, assuring him Keith would be taken care of. But in the few, very short conversations they’d had, they were always reduced to childish, petty bickering. For Lance, whose conversations had been proper, formal, and always about politics or his future as king, it was freeing. 

 

Lance straightened his posture and crossed his arms, “exactly, I asked first, so I get my answer first.” 

 

“But in sporting competitions, second place gets their medal before first, so I should get my answer first.” 

 

They narrowed their eyes at each other and glared, waiting for the other to break. Lance sighed and dropped his arms, “Coran gave me these hypothetical scenarios for things I’ll have to deal with as king. He wants to discuss them tomorrow and I still have three left to do. Not including the one I’m currently stuck on.” 

 

“So you’re doing...prince homework.” 

 

Lance shrugged, “I have to be prepared for when I become king. I’m eighteen now, it could happen any day.” 

 

“I don’t really know anything about your politics, but you could bounce ideas off me if that would help.”

 

Lance stared at Keith for a moment. “Why do you want to help? This stuff isn’t all that exciting.” 

 

Keith slipped his hands into his pockets and shrugged, “I probably wasn’t going to sleep anyway, might as well do something useful.” 

 

Lance accepted Keith’s explanation and told him to follow as he turned back towards his table in the corner. Keith sat next to Lance in the extra chair at the table. “So, basically,” Lance said, sliding the document over so it laid between him and Keith, “I have to read this documentation of the situation, then write down on this piece of paper-” Lance lifted up and waved around his blank page for Keith to see- “what I would do and why.” 

 

“Okay,” Keith scanned the small print for a moment, then looked up at Lance, “so summarize the situation to me.” 

 

Lance froze, caught off guard by the sudden eye contact. He stared, and swallowed thickly. Were Keith’s eyes purple? He cleared his throat, forcing himself to focus back on the task. Looking away from Keith’s possibly purple eyes, he pulled the document back towards himself. “Well, the document says-” 

 

“No.” Keith interrupted him before Lance could start reading from the document. “Don’t read it to me. Tell me in your own words.” 

 

“Oh, um,” Lance hadn’t considered doing it that way before, he always just used the exact wording of the document, “well, a nearby village thinks that there’s a demon living with, and possibly possessing, one of the citizens. They already got their local priest to try and exorcise it, but the people claim to still see the demon out at night. Also, the supposedly possessed citizen showed up with a baby all of a sudden. He claims he found it abandoned and took it in, but the people think the demon seduced him and it’s a half-demon devil child.” 

 

Keith whistled, “wow.” 

 

Lance sighed, “I don’t know what to do with this one.” 

 

“List out your options. One by one, write them down and the pros and cons for each of them.” 

 

“But usually I just mentally figure out my options and pick from there.” 

 

“It’ll be easier if you get all your ideas out on paper. Then you can look at all of them side-by-side.”

 

Lance turned to Keith, “why are you so good at this?” 

 

Keith looked down at his hands, “my brother used to help me with homework and I was really bad at questions where you had to read a story and analyse it, so these are the steps he always told me to do.” Lance took in Keith’s sudden, sad demeanor. Keith cleared his throat, “anyway, list your options,” he said, turning the subject back to Lance’s work. 

 

Lance looked down at the document then over to his blank page. As he started writing he could feel Keith get closer to him to read over his shoulder. 

 

_ Option 1. Side with people, execute citizen and child.  _

 

“Woah,” Keith said, “isn’t that a little intense? You’re going straight for death?” 

 

Lance looked up at Keith, “they’ve already tried to exorcise the citizen, and the child is half-demon so you can’t exorcise it. The only way to get rid of them and make the rest of the citizens happy would be to execute them.” 

 

He turned back to his page to list the positives and negatives. 

 

_ Good things:  _

 

  * __The majority is pleased__


  * _Demon is gone_



 

_ Bad things:  _

 

  * __Killing a child__


  * _Possibly killing someone innocent_


  * _Non-believers lashing out_



 

 

“What do you mean by ‘non-believers’?” Keith asked. 

 

“If there’s anyone who either doesn’t believe in demons, or doesn’t believe that the citizen is possessed and the child is half-demon, they may get angry at me if I decide to execute. Which is what happened when this situation actually happened.” 

 

“People lashed out?” 

 

Lance pursed his lips, “not really, but this happened when I was only a baby and my father decided to execute them. Unfortunately for him, the citizen who was believed to be possessed was the older brother of the head of the royal guard at the time. So, when the day came, and the citizen and his child were trapped in their home to be burnt to the ground, the head of the guard vanished.” 

 

“Really?” 

 

Lance nodded, “they also never found the body of the baby in the rubble. My father said it was because the demon returned to hell, but I honestly think that the father found a way to hand off the baby to Shirogane before the house was engulfed in flames, and he ran off with it.” 

 

Keith’s eyes widened and his breath hitched, “Shirogane?” 

 

“That was the name of the head of the guard. Takashi Shirogane.” 

 

“And...and what about the dad? And the baby? What were their names?” 

 

Lance looked over at Keith. Everything about him seemed to have gone strangely still. He was still looking at Lance with wide eyes and his hands were clenched together tightly. “I don’t know, the document never says what their names were.” He gave Keith a once-over, “are you okay?” 

 

Keith blinked at Lance a few times, his eyes flicking between the document on the table and Lance. He shook his head, as if to clear it, “how long have you been in here?” 

 

Lance watched Keith carefully, taking in his tense posture. “Since this afternoon,” he said, not questioning the sudden change in subject. 

 

“Let’s go for a walk,” Keith said, standing up, “we could both use some fresh air. It’s stuffy in here.” 

 

Lance stayed seated. It was clear that something about the Shirogane situation shocked or bothered him and he was trying to change the subject, but- “I have to get these done.” 

 

“You’ve been in here all day, I’m sure you’ve done enough.” 

 

“I can’t, Keith. I need to get it done.” 

 

“Come on. It’ll be good for you to take a break and get out of here.” Keith watched him expectantly. 

 

Lance pursed his lips. He knew, logically, that he needed to stay and get the work done. As king, he wouldn’t get breaks all that often. He had to always be thinking of the kingdom and what would be best for the people. He wouldn’t be able to take a break when making important decisions and settling disputes, he would need to take action. 

 

But Keith stood in front of him and just watched, waiting for Lance’s answer. His features looked soft in the dim light of the library. Messy hair falling in his face, soft cheeks, and eyes that Lance could swear were purple. He passed it off as his tired mind playing tricks on him. 

 

Lance should have said no, but he found it awfully difficult to say no to Keith. So he sighed and pushed himself up out of his chair, not even bothering to stack up his papers nicely before leaving. 

 

“All right,” he said, “let’s go.” 

 

**The garden. YX18.**

 

As the two boys left the library together, Lance took the lead. Walking through twists and turns in the corridors, he finally stopped in front of a plain, wooden door. He pulled it open and held it for Keith as he walked through. 

 

“The castle garden,” Lance said. Though it was already obvious what it was. 

 

Countless flowers and plants grew all around in different plant beds, paths weaving between each one. Keith wandered from one to the next, observing the plants living within them with an air of awe and curiosity. Lance watched as the anxiety and tension that had been present in Keith just minutes before melted away. The corners of Keith’s mouth were turned up into a small smile, Lance was sure he didn’t even realise it was there. 

 

“Do you know what all these flowers are?” Keith asked, observing a bush of pink flowers. 

 

Lance shook his head, “no, I only know some of them. My mother could name them all, though. She planted them.” 

 

Keith straightened up and looked at Lance, “she did?” 

 

Lance nodded, “after she and my father got married, she found this hidden little garden. It was decrepit and full of weeds and she vowed to make it beautiful again. She got every kind of plant and flower she could get her hands on and found a place for it.” 

 

“And she still takes care of it?” 

 

“Um,” Lance looked down at his hands, “no. She and my father passed away a few years ago. I try my best to take care of it for her.” 

 

Keith’s improved mood dropped, “oh. I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to- I just thought they might’ve just been away on a trip and that’s why they weren’t here.” 

 

Lance shook his head, “they got sick and passed away. It’s why Coran is desperate to get me crowned king now that I’m eighteen.” 

 

“Then why haven’t you?” 

 

“I need to get married to be crowned. Which is why you’ve been here for two days and seen about five different royal visitors.” 

 

“You don’t sound too pleased about it.” 

 

“I just...I don’t know. Coran is just trying to find the girl that’d be the best fit for the kingdom.” 

 

“Well what about you?” Lance looked up and locked eyes with Keith. “Do you want to get married?” 

 

“It’s what’s best for the kingdom,” Lance answered automatically. 

 

“I don’t care about that.” Keith said bluntly. “What do  _ you  _ want?” 

 

“I…” Lance licked his lips nervously, “...want what’s best for the kingdom.” 

 

Keith let out an irritated sigh, “you know that’s not what I meant. You’ve got to think about yourself once in a while, Lance. I know I’ve only been here for two days, but even I can see that you neglect that.” 

 

Lance felt sudden anger bubble up in his chest. His repressed thoughts and emotions all rising up to the surface at once. “What do you expect me to say, Keith?! That- that I feel sick every time I have to make up a new excuse when I reject a girl? That sometimes I just want to abandon all my responsibilities and run off into the woods with the imaginary boy of my dreams?” Lance swallowed thickly, willing back the tears that stung at the back of his eyes, “I don’t get that freedom, Keith. I have a duty to my kingdom and I can’t make excuses forever.” 

 

Keith stared at him. “The boy of your dreams?” 

 

Lance’s eyes widened, realizing what he’d said in his flurry of words. “Oh God,” he pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes, “oh God, I’m so stupid.” 

 

Lance kept his hands against his eyes so he didn’t have to look at Keith’s undoubtedly horrified expression. A boy liking boys? It’s something that Lance had never encountered outside his own head. “Hey, c’mon,” Keith’s voice said. Lance felt hands on his wrists, pulling his hands away from his eyes, “look at me.” Lance opened his eyes to see Keith giving him a small, understanding smile, “me too.” 

 

Lance’s heart stopped, “what?” 

 

“Me too. I like boys too.” 

 

It was like he couldn’t breathe, “you do?” Keith nodded and Lance could do nothing but stare. Keith’s hands were still on Lance’s wrists, one of his thumbs rubbing absent circles against Lance’s skin. He was smiling up at Lance, the moonlight hitting him in just the right way that- “are your eyes purple?” Lance blurted. 

 

The thumb rubbing small circles into Lance’s wrist stopped. Keith let go of one of Lance’s wrists and gently touched his cheek, right underneath his eye. He looked down at the ground, his smile gone, “no, they’re blue.” 

 

“I just...I swear they’re purple.” 

 

“It’s the lighting,” Keith said shortly.

 

Lance kicked himself mentally for ruining the moment. Determined to try and get it back, he shifted the arm that Keith still held in one of his hands to slide his fingers between Keith’s. He squeezed Keith’s hand lightly to get his attention. “I want to show you my favourite spot.” 

 

Keith was looking down at their linked hands and when he looked up at Lance, he had a light dusting of pink on his cheeks. He squeezed Lance’s hand back, “okay.” 

 

Lance beamed and pulled Keith along the paths in the garden until they came across a large hedge that grew up against one of the castle walls with bushes of pink flowers on either side. Lance gestured towards it, “voilà!” 

 

Keith quirked an eyebrow, “it’s just a hedge?” 

 

Lance smiled, “don’t be so quick with assumptions, Keith.” He pulled Keith around the side of the hedge and past the bushes, right to where one would assume the hedge meets the wall. Except it ended long before it hit the wall. Lance sat in the soft grass and pulled Keith down with him. They sat cross-legged across from each other. Lance looked around at the plants around them, “this was my hiding spot when I was younger. Whenever I wanted to get away, I would come and sit here.” 

 

“Why are you showing me this?” 

 

Lance looked down at their still-joined hands and ran his thumb over the back of Keith’s hand. He shrugged, “I don’t know, something about you just...makes me want to open up.” He looked up and met Keith’s eyes, “does that make sense?” 

 

Keith visibly swallowed, not breaking eye contact, “you barely know me.” 

 

Lance deflated a fraction, training his eyes again on their hands, “I know. But you’re the first person who doesn’t speak incredibly formally to me, even after you found out I was royalty. You’re also the one person who talks to me about anything other than my future as king.” His eyes flicked back up to Keith, “you’re the only other person I know of who’s…like me.” 

 

“Well, I know what it’s like to feel alone. I just...I wanted you to know you weren’t.” 

 

They were silent for a few moments, both of them just looking at their linked hands. “Keith?” He looked up at the sound of Lance’s voice. Lance held out his other hand, and Keith placed his in it. Lance squeezed both of Keith’s hands and smiled, willing his racing heart to relax. “Meet me back here tomorrow night,” he gave Keith’s hands another squeeze, “please?” 

 

Keith squeezed Lance’s hands in response, “of course.” 

 

**The garden, the next night. YX18.**

 

Keith and Lance laid on their backs, side-by-side, staring up at the sky. 

 

“How did discussing your hypothetical situations go with Coran?” Keith asked, breaking the silence between them. 

 

Lance shrugged as best as he could lying down. “I thought he’d scold me for not finishing all of them, but all he cared about was that I had left the table a mess last night.Then we discussed the ones I did finish for a little while. Nothing interesting.” 

 

Keith hummed, “well, did you pick the right answer?” 

 

“I guess. Coran seemed pleased, but I don’t know.” 

 

“What don’t you know?” 

 

“I just worry that, despite looking at it from every angle, I’m still going to make the wrong decision when I’m faced with an issue.” 

 

“You know, my brother-” Keith said, seemingly changing the subject- “he was part of an exploration team.” 

 

Lance kept his eyes trained on the sky, but he furrowed his eyebrows, confused, “okay?” 

 

“Well, before his team left for their mission, he kept worrying about stuff. He’s someone that, when he’s working with other people, needs every possible problem and variable taken care of.” 

 

“Alright,” Lance said, still not following Keith’s train of thought. 

 

“So, it was their departure day, and he was still stressing himself out way too much. I could tell, even though he was trying to hide it from me. His commander noticed too and came over to him and you know what he said to him?” 

 

“What?” 

 

“If you spend too much time worrying about what could go wrong, you might miss the chance to do something great.” Keith paused for a moment. “I bet you’re gonna be a great king, Lance. You just need to trust yourself.” 

 

Lance turned his head to look over a Keith, only to find that Keith was already looking at him. He had a small smile on his face, and his eyes were soft as he looked over at Lance. Lance felt a smile creep onto his own face. “Thank you, Keith. That means a lot.” 

 

Keith’s smile grew a little more, “it means a lot coming from someone who doesn’t have half a clue how your political system works?” 

 

Lance laughed softly, his smile dropping a fraction, “it’s not that. I’ve heard so many different people, royalty, advisors, councilmen, citizens, servants, say that they think I’ll be a wonderful king. That I’m going to be just like my father. And to me, it’s just more weight being put on my shoulders. But coming from you-” Lance paused and locked eyes with Keith. He could feel his own heartbeat, it felt like it was going to break right out of his chest. He smiled once more, wider, this time- “it doesn’t feel like expectations. It just feels like...someone who believes in me.” 

 

Keith turned his head to look back up at the sky. “Yeah, well, I never knew your father- or any other king for that matter- so I don’t have anyone to compare you to.” 

 

Lance watched the side of Keith’s head. They laid there in silence; Keith watching the sky, and Lance watching Keith. The simple conversation had Lance’s mind buzzing. The story Keith had shared with him about his brother, it was something of where Keith had come from, which is a topic that had only ever seemed to come up in their first conversation.

 

“Keith?” Lance found himself unable to keep the question he had floating around to himself. 

 

“Yeah?” 

 

“Last night, when we were out here, you said you know what it’s like to feel alone. Is that why you came here?” 

 

Lance could see Keith’s eyes widen, and the steady rise and fall of his chest sutter. He was silent as he formulated his answer. “I- not  _ here _ specifically, but yes. I guess you could say that’s the reason.” 

 

“But...you mentioned your brother.” 

 

“What about him?”

 

“If you have your brother, then you’re not alone. Right?” 

 

Keith sighed and closed his eyes, “if he was around, then yes, right. But he’s not.” 

 

“What do you mean?” 

 

Keith opened his eyes and stared out at the stars, his eyes glassy and seemingly far away, “he’s gone. Vanished.” 

 

“What about your parents?” 

 

“Mom left when I was only a few years old. A couple years later, Dad left too.” 

 

“Your friends?” 

 

“Didn’t have any. I didn’t talk to people, I had a reputation for being ‘edgy’-” he used finger quotes around ‘edgy’- “so people didn’t talk to me and I got kicked out of school shortly after my brother disappeared. I was living alone in the middle of the desert in a shack. Until I ended up here.” 

 

Lance was quiet for a moment, digesting all the information Keith just gave him. “Do you want to go back?” 

 

Keith finally turned his head to look at Lance again, “what?” 

 

“Do you want to go back there?” 

 

Keith sighed, “I don’t know. Even if I wanted to, I don’t know how I would.” 

 

“Why do you say that?” 

 

Keith looked into Lance’s eyes, “when we first met, out in the woods, and we were bickering about whether this was a dream or not, you said that it might have been magic that brought me here.” 

 

“I did say that, yes.” 

 

“Do you still stand by it?” 

 

Lance shrugged, “I suppose so.” 

 

Keith sighed again, “you were right. You were definitely right.” 

 

“I was? How do you know?” 

 

Keith huffed out a quiet laugh, “for one, I went to sleep in the desert and woke up in the woods. Second, there’s no phones or internet or technology.” 

 

“What’s phones and internet?” 

 

“My point exactly.” 

 

Lance paused. “Fair enough. Continue.” 

 

Keith smiled at Lance before continuing. “So, I’m not sure if you believe in there being multiple universes or whatever, but I definitely do now.” 

 

“So what are you saying?” 

 

Keith picked at the grass in front of him, “the night before I ended up here, I made a wish on a star to start over. I didn’t think it would do anything, since I had been wishing for my brother back for months and got nothing. But then I woke up here. So, I think, something heard me make a wish and it transported me to another dimension? Or another universe? I don’t know. But I’m here now.” 

 

Then, suddenly, everything made sense to Lance. Finding Keith in the woods. Bonding with him so quickly through a few small conversations. It was all linked to his wish. Allura had brought him someone who wouldn’t care about his title or his wealth. She had brought him someone who would love him for who he was, and treat him as a person, not a title. All of this crashed into Lance at once, and he could only stare at Keith as he absently picked at the grass, waiting for Lance’s response. 

 

“Do you want to go back?” Was all Lance could say. 

 

“I thought I did.” 

 

“But you don’t anymore?” Lance wondered if he sounded too hopeful. 

 

Keith shook his head, “ the only reason I would go back at this point would be for my brother. And even though I know they’re lying about how he went missing, I’m not sure he’s ever coming back, as much as I hate to admit it.” 

 

“So you want to stay here?” Lance wanted to hear Keith actually say it. He was sure he was being incredibly obvious, but he couldn’t help the tone of his voice being incredibly hopeful. 

 

Keith’s face reddened. “I do now,” he said quietly, avoiding Lance’s gaze. 

 

Lance tried to hide his giddy smile with his hands. Keith looked up and the two of them locked eyes. Lance couldn’t help the laugh that bubbled up in his throat. “What are you looking at?” He joked. 

 

Lance’s smile seemed to be contagious as Keith’s smile widened, “nothing.” He pushed himself to his feet and looked down at Lance. “It’s getting late. We should go back in.” He held a hand out to Lance, who was sitting up, “walk me to my room?” 

 

“Why of course, it’s the chivalrous thing to do.” Lance said, taking Keith’s hand and getting to his feet. 

 

They kept their hands linked together once Lance was standing. “And they say chivalry is dead,” Keith said. 

 

Lance chuckled. As they made the walk through the garden, back into the castle, and to Keith’s room, the joking and giddy aura around them faded. They walked in silence, but it was comfortable. Lance usually hated lulls in conversation, but with Keith, it was a perfect silence. 

 

Once they made it to Keith’s door, the two of them paused. They stared at the door that signified their separation for another day. Keith stepped towards the door and turned the handle, opening it a fraction. Lance loosened his grip on Keith’s hand. Their hands fell away from each other and Lance took a step back.

 

“Well,” he said, “goodnight Keith. Sleep well.” 

 

He turned and was about to walk towards his own room, a damper put on his mood, when Keith’s voice stopped him. “Lance, wait.” Lance faced Keith again to see that he had stepped away from the doors and back to Lance. He stood right in front of Lance and wrung his hands together nervously. 

 

“Yes?” 

 

“Lance, I- well, I- um.” Keith stuttered, looking for words. 

 

“Keith.” Lance took one of Keith’s hands in his,  and tucked a loose lock of Keith’s hair behind his ear with the other, “just breathe. What is it?” 

 

Keith took a deep breath and slid his hand out of Lance’s, fiddling with them nervously again. “Okay. So. I’m about to do something really bold and probably really stupid. And if I’ve been reading this entire thing completely wrong I give you full permission to- to hit me or punish me or whatever.” 

 

Lance chuckled, “Alright. I’ll hold you to-”

 

Lance was cut off as Keith grabbed the collar of his shirt, pulling him down and pressing his lips against Lance’s. Shocked, Lance went completely still, he could feel his eyes widen. Just as soon as it had started, it ended. Keith let go of him and took a step back. He cleared his throat and avoided eye contact. 

 

“I’m sorry,” he said, “I must have- sorry. I should just go to bed.”

 

He turned to go back to his room, but Lance broke out of his shock and grabbed Keith’s wrist. “Keith, you can’t jump a guy like that and expect him to be able to respond properly.” 

 

Keith looked up from the floor. Lance smiled and pulled him closer so he stood right in front of him. “Let’s try this again, now, shall we?” Lance said. 

 

Keith smiled, “we shall.” 

 

**Lance’s room. One week later. YX18.**

 

“Lance, you can’t keep rejecting every girl that comes through this castle! It’s been nearly a week and a half since you turned eighteen, and you haven’t gotten engaged!” 

 

Lance laid on his bed, one arm over his eyes, “Coran, it’s too early for this.” 

 

“It’s the middle of the afternoon! I was starting to worry you’d dropped dead when you didn’t show up for lunch! What on earth has you sleeping so late in the day?” 

 

“Not sure. Just haven’t been sleeping well, I suppose.” 

 

“Well, perhaps you need to start going to bed sooner. We can’t have you sleeping all hours of the day when there are things to be done! Now, back to the subject of your engagement. You know that to be crowned king, you need to get married, and you’ve met plenty of nice young ladies, so it’s time you choose one of them to marry.” 

 

“Well what if I don’t want to marry any of them!” Lance snapped sitting up in his bed. “I’m the royalty of this kingdom, why should I have to marry someone to rule my own kingdom?!” 

 

Coran didn’t look taken aback. He looked as if he knew this was coming. “Lance, it’s tradition. The heir to the throne must be married before taking it.” 

 

“Screw tradition!” Lance threw the covers off his bed and crossed the room, throwing the doors to the balcony open and stepping outside. 

 

Coran sighed, “Lance-” 

 

“No!” He whipped around to face Coran. Seeing his old advisor’s tired eyes, he calmed down slightly. “No, Coran. I’m- I’m done with this.” He turned away from him again, leaning against the railing of his balcony, “I don’t want to marry any of the girls I met, and I’m not going to want to marry any of the girls you’ve arranged for me to meet.” 

 

Coran leaned against the railing next to Lance, both of them looking out over the castle walls and the forest, to the horizon. “I know what this is about.” 

 

Lance smiled softly, looking down at his hands, “I don’t think you do.” 

 

Coran nudged Lance with his shoulder, “I know more than you think I do, Lance.” 

 

“Go on, then,” Lance looked over at Coran, “what’s it all about?” 

 

Coran smiled at Lance, “it’s about Keith.” Lance’s face paled, his heart dropping to his stomach. Coran laughed, “you’re not as secretive as you think you are, Lance!” 

 

“I- but- how long have you known?!” 

 

“Oh, I knew the day you brought him here.” 

 

Lance was even more confused, “but it wasn’t until a few days later until-” 

 

“I know, I know. But I know a lovestruck face when I see one. And I saw one when I dragged you away to your tutoring session that day.” 

 

“Then why-” 

 

“Took keep up the façade that everything is normal. Besides, most of those royals you met contacted me, not the other way around.” 

 

“Okay, but why-” 

 

“I kept nagging you because I wanted you to fess up to me at some point. Or, like you just did, start arguing with me about your marriage.” 

 

Lance stared at Coran, who only smiled back. “So you knew. This whole time you knew.” 

 

Coran put a hand on Lance’s shoulder, “Lance, I’ve known you liked boys since you were four.”

 

“How-” 

 

“I was watching over you and you would not stop talking about how you were going to find your prince charming one day. Now, it seems you’ve found him.” 

 

Lance ran his hands through his hair, a million and one emotions running through him. Out of shock, and giddiness, he just started to laugh. He doubled over, holding onto the railing for support as he laughed, tears running down his cheeks. Once he was able to calm down, he straightened up and hugged Coran. He held onto him tight. “Coran, you are the best unofficial father I could ever have.” 

 

Coran chuckled, “thank you, Lance. You’re a wonderful unofficial son.” 

 

“So does this mean no more meeting with girls?” 

 

“Yes it does, Lance.”

 

Lance took a step back, happier than ever. Then, something occurred to him. “Coran, what do we do now?” 

 

“What do you mean?”    
  
“Keith is from somewhere very different to here, and we’ve only known each other for a week, he’s not going to want to get married that soon, based off what he’s told me of where he came from. And what would we tell the people, anyway? Surely they won’t stand for having me marry a boy?” 

 

Coran twirled his moustache, “I’ve already got that covered.” 

 

Lance’s eyes widened, “you do?” 

 

He nodded, “remember that fairy that came to grant your wish on the night of your birthday?” 

 

“You know about-” 

 

“Allura? Why yes, I taught her everything she knows!” 

 

“You-” 

 

“The details aren’t important right now. But she’s agreed to come and fake-marry you so the people think you’re married. Then we’ll pretend she died of some unknown sickness a month later, say you’re too heartbroken to marry another woman and boom! You’re king and can live peacefully with Keith and you two can marry each other when you’re ready.” 

 

Lance was dumbfounded. He stared at Coran, still processing everything. He knew Lance liked boys. He knew about Keith. He knew about Allura  _ and  _ apparently taught her magic. He already had a plan for Lance to become king but still be with Keith. “You really think of everything.” 

 

“My dear boy, that’s my job! Now get dressed, you need to eat! We have work to do!” 

 

**Throne room. YX23.**

 

“You wanted to speak with me?” 

 

The king and his secret husband turned as the door to the throne room opened. 

 

“Coran,” Lance said, “yes, we did.” 

 

“What can I do for you?” He asked. 

 

The husbands shared a look. “We’ve decided,” Lance said, “that we want the people to know about Keith.” 

 

Coran’s eyes widened, “I beg your pardon?”

 

“Keith and I got married nearly two years ago now, and I hate that no one knows but us and a few select staff. I don’t care what the citizens say, or what they think, I want them to know.” 

 

Coran smiled, “alright then. Shall I organize a trip around the kingdom? To show the people their true royal couple?” 

 

Lance and Keith looked at each other and smiled. “Please,” Keith said, “that would be wonderful.” 

 

**A small village on the outskirts of the kingdom. YX23.**

 

After going through a majority of the villages in the kingdom, most of the citizens had taken the news incredibly well. Of course there were a few bad apples, as there was bound to be, but there was outpouring love and support from a majority of the citizens. 

 

As they were trotting through a small village, on their way to the next, Keith watched the small homes pass by through the window of his carriage. They were going slow enough at the time, that when they passed by a certain house, Keith was able to get a good look at the two men standing outside it, watching the carriage go by. 

 

One of the men leaning against the fence looked older, more adult. He had black hair, was very muscular, and he was missing one arm. But his face was all too familiar. Keith sat up straighter and took in the other man. He was younger, Keith’s age, and had long, black hair. Not to mention he looked exactly like Keith. 

 

The older man, obviously the Shiro from the universe in which the king Keith had found himself in years ago, looked between the man standing next to him and the man going by in the carriage. 

 

But as soon as Keith processed all this, the carriage had moved on and the two men in front of the house were out of sight. 

 

He leaned away from the window and slumped down in his seat with a sigh. 

 

“You okay?” Lance asked. 

 

“I think I just had my mind blown.” 

 

Lance tilted his head, “what do you mean?” 

 

Realizing he had never actually told Lance about his ‘this-universe’ version of himself, Keith turned his head to look over at Lance. “Do you remember, the first night we went to the garden, when we were in the library and you told me the story of the half-demon kid and Takashi Shirogane? The old head of the guard?” 

 

“Yeah what about them?” 

 

Keith smiled sheepishly, “weeeell you see, the thing is-” 

 

**Earth. XY23.**

 

Team Voltron was finally able to return to Earth after years of fighting the Galra. It was only for a visit, but it was enough. 

 

Shiro wanted to reconnect with Keith after not seeing him for so long. He felt bad. Even though he hadn’t meant to, he’d abandoned Keith, just like everyone else is Keith’s life had. But when the Garrison had told him that Keith had gotten kicked out, and they didn’t know where he had gone, Shiro started his search. 

 

He didn’t need to search far, though. Through some simple research, he found a missing persons report from years before, filed by a store clerk who had gotten accustomed to seeing Keith every two weeks when he needed food. When she hadn’t seen him in nearly a month, she called the police. 

 

Shiro didn’t know what happened to Keith. Where he went, or who he was with. But he was sure that Keith was alive out there, somewhere. He just hoped, with all his heart, that wherever Keith was, he was happy.

 

Unbeknownst to Shiro, in another reality, not too far from his own, his unofficial little brother was happier than he ever was in his own reality. He was alive and happy, and was going to continue living in that alternate reality with his perfect happily ever after. 

 

And all it took was a wish upon a star. 

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on tumblr @fandomsnstuff !


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